Abstract:
This paper provides details on a case study con-
ducted into the low-cost production of electrocautery pens in
Kenya. Kenya’s healthcare system is burdened by unaffordable
biomedical products, tools and devices. As as consequence,
preventable diseases and mortality strain the country. Kenya
not only has a poorly equipped health care system, but the
country is unable to maintain the imported equipment it has as a
result of skills shortages in biomedical engineering in the country.
The objective of this paper is to determine the feasibility for
manufacturing cheaper biomedical engineering devices in Kenya,
with a focus on electrocautery pens. Our method is based on
an electro-mechanical design, materials selection, manufacture
and testing. While our work is still in-progress, this paper
elucidates the feasibility for manufacturing electrocautery devices
at low-cost, while acknowledging the challenges in sourcing raw
materials within the country
